1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a method of producing glass or vitrified carbon by thermal degradation of aromatic organic compounds having cross-linking property in the thermally degraded state.
2. Prior Art
Glass carbon is produced from various plastics, such as, for example, polyacrylonitrile or polyfurfuryl alcohol through a complicated degradation process (carbonization process) under air and nitrogen at steadily increasing temperatures. In this process, a select plastic is first changed into a desired form, for example fiber, plate or shaped part, and is then thermally degraded to such a degree that the plastic is substantially converted into carbon, which is referred to as glass carbon. During this process, the plastic can not be heated above its melting temperature during the initial degradation phase since otherwise it would loose its shape.